PB1943: THE EFFECTS OF AN ONLINE CURRICULUM BASED APPROACH TO CME ON HEMATOLOGIST/ONCOLOGISTS’ ABILITY TO TREAT PATIENTS WITH BTK INHIBITORS FOR B-CELL MALIGNANCIES
Authors: Sarah Elizabeth Bomba, Victoria Harvey-Jones, Sanneke Koekkoek
Journal: HemaSphere (2023)

Topic: 6. Chronic lymphocytic leukemia and related disorders - Clinical Background: The treatment paradigms for B-cell malignancies including chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) are rapidly evolving. Fortunately, treatment options for CLL and MCL have expanded considerably in recent years thanks to an improved understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying this disease. Bruton tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitors are one such treatment option. Although BTK inhibitors bring new hope to patients with CLL and MCL, the rapid introduction of these agents has also increased the complexity of treatment, making it challenging for hematologist/oncologists to incorporate these novel therapies into clinical practice. Given how quickly the use of BTK inhibitors in CLL and MCL treatment is evolving, it is difficult for even the most conscientious healthcare providers to stay up to date on advances. Aims: The aim of this study was to determine whether a comprehensive continuing medical education (CME) online curriculum could improve hematologist/oncologists’ knowledge, competence, and confidence in managing therapy for CLL and MCL with BTK inhibitors. Methods: The educational analysis consisted of 6 online, CME-certified activities. Educational impact was assessed with repeated pre-/post-education including multiple choice knowledge/competence questions and 5-point Likert scale confidence questions. Data from hematologists/oncologists who completed pre- and/or post-education assessments were analyzed. Absolute changes in percentage of correct responses and clinicians who were confident (value of 4 or 5) were used to measure improvement in knowledge, competence, and confidence. A McNemar’s test assessed significant levels of changes reported with P values <.05 considered statistically significant. The activities in this series launched January 4, 2022 through December 29, 2022, with each activity being available to learners for 1-year from launch date; data were collected through February 2023. Results: Multiple questions were used to aggregate data by theme across the 6 activities (n ranged from 30-365). Overall improvements in absolute change in knowledge/competence by learning theme were observed (Table 1). Hematologist/oncologists demonstrated statistically significant improvements in knowledge/competence related to clinical trial data on BTK inhibitors, treatment selection considerations for BTK inhibitors, real-world evidence on the use of BTK inhibitors, and mechanistic differences between BTK inhibitors. 87% of hematologist/oncologists experienced an improvement in or reinforcement of knowledge/competence from CME, which translated to significant improvements in confidence in treating patients with CLL and MCL using the latest evidence-base on BTK inhibitors after education (P<.001). Summary/Conclusion: An online curriculum-based approach was successful in improving knowledge, competence, and confidence of hematologist/oncologists’ ability to personalize care with BTK inhibitors for patients with B-cell malignancies. These results show the ability of education to translate to improvements in clinical care for patients with CLL and MCL. Continued curricula-based education can serve as a comprehensive means to further increase clinicians’ abilities in this clinical setting and optimize patient outcomes.Keywords: Mantle cell lymphoma, Chronic lymphocytic leukemia